Greater New Orleans

Members of the Louisiana House Education committee hear testimony from Chairman Steve Carter, R-Baton Rouge (center), during their first meeting of the 2014 session on Wednesday (March 12).
(Lauren McGaughy, NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune)

Louisiana lawmakers Wednesday (March 12) approved an amendment to the state Constitution that would put restrictions on who can sit on state boards of higher education, but failed to consider companion legislation to lay out what the qualifications would be.

House Bill 588, the amendment sponsored by Republican state Rep. Steve Carter of Baton Rouge, was unanimously approved by the House Education Committee that he chairs. But halfway through the presentation, Carter and the other lawmakers realized it would have made more sense to consider Carter's companion bill first. That bill sets out what the new qualifications for state board members would be.

This companion bill, House Bill 696, will be deferred until a later date. But Carter said, judging by the strong support of his colleagues for the amendment, he feels confident it too will pass when it is considered.

There are four state higher education boards that oversee the four college and university systems -- LSU, University of Louisiana, Southern and the community and technical colleges (LCTCS). The Board of Regents sets higher ed policy and also has its own board.

Under current law, members of these five boards don't have to have a background in education, finance or business and all members are appointed by Gov. Bobby Jindal with Senate approval. Only the Regents and LCTCS board members need to "be representative of the state's population by race and gender."

Carter's bill -- the one that wasn't passed Wednesday -- sets out what specific qualifications members of state higher ed board would be expected to exhibit. The effort is to ensure the governor doesn't have carte blanche in choosing who determines higher ed policy in Louisiana.

The new qualifications would include:

One member to have spent at least five years as a CEO, CFO or equivalent position in a large company.

One member who has an MBA and/or 15 years of business management experience in the private sector.

Three members who are graduates of the system that they oversee.

One member appointed from list of nominees put together by the Council for a Better Louisiana (CABL), Public Affairs Research Council (PAR) and Louisiana Association of Business and Industry (LABI).

One member with at least five years experience in the public sphere dealing with workforce or economic development.

One member with at least five years experience in the public sphere dealing with budgeting or resource management.

The new law would also require all boards, not just Regents and LCTCS, to be an accurate racial representation of the state, while other provisions in the bill require even stricter qualifications with regards to the community and technical colleges' board.

During the hearing, state Rep. Ed Price, D-Gonzales, expressed concern that HB696 would be vetoed by the governor, since it puts restrictions on who he can appoint. Carter responded, saying he didn't think there would be much more opportunity for Jindal to appoint more members to the five boards.

"That wouldn't stop him from vetoing it though," said Price, to which Carter responded with a laugh, "But our governor always does the right thing!"

The constitutional amendment will now proceed to the House floor, where it will require a two-thirds vote of the members to pass onto the Senate Education Committee for consideration. If successful all the way through, it would bypass the governor's desk and would be put to a vote of the people on Nov. 4, 2014.

The non-amendment companion bill that sets out the qualifications needs to be reconsidered by the Education Committee. It won't require a two-thirds vote, but Jindal can choose to veto if it reaches his desk.

On Wednesday, the House Education Committee also approved House Bill 244 from Chris Broadwater, R-Hammond, that would allow third parties to hold firearm auctions on college campuses. Certain restrictions would apply, such as requiring security as well as the guns to remain unloaded and have trigger locks.